Hundreds of schools will close, flights have been grounded and major incidents declared in parts of England as Storm Ciaran lashes the UK.
Major incidents have been declared in Southampton, the Isle of Wight and Jersey with councils shutting schools there and in Devon and Cornwall to protect residents as 80mph winds are set to batter the south coast.
The Met Office has issued two “danger to life” warnings across England and Wales as travel across land, air and sea has been disrupted, with ferries, trains and flights cancelled until Saturday.
Train operators have warned travellers to expect disruption on cross-border services.
London Heathrow airport, the busiest in the UK, has imposed restrictions on the “flow rate” of arriving aircraft due to the strong winds expected to arrive with Storm Ciarán.
British Airways, which has more than half the slots at Heathrow, has grounded 30 flights including two round trips to each of Amsterdam, Belfast City and Paris CDG.
All four BA services to and from Jersey have also been grounded due to the closure of the island’s airport all day on Thursday.
